In the deadliest attack since the U.S. invaded Iraq, suspected Sunni militiamen
killed
at least 215 people and wounded 257 othersin Shi’ite Sadr City
today; the death toll is expected to go much higher. In other events, another
117 Iraqis were killed or found dead and 57 more wounded for a combined total
of 332 dead and 315 wounded today.

In the Sadr City district, a series of mortar and bomb attacks left 215
dead and 257 wounded. The explosions rocked the large, Shi’ite slum
at 15 minute intervals beginning at about 3:00 p.m. Among the specific
attacks were two car bombs that blasted the Jamila and al-Hay markets and
another car bomb at Shahidein Square. Sunni militiamen were thought to be behind
the attacks.

Shi’ite militiamen responded by firing several mortar rounds at the Sunni
Adhamiya neighborhood, killing
20 and
wounding seven more people. Also, mortars were dropped on a Sunni mosque,
killing one person. Three
more Sunni targets were blasted by explosives; 11
died and 23 were wounded in Azamiyah, Bab al-Moazzam and on Palestine Street.
Over in northern Baghdad, 30 gunmen laid
siege to the Health Ministry in what may be another Sunni-backed attack.
The three-hour firefight between the Iraqi Army and the gunmen, who are thought
to be Sunni militiamen, left five
wounded. A curfew
has been imposed and the airports are closed in the hope that it will curb further
attacks.

Other events in the capital included a roadside bomb attack, which wounded
five in the Nahdha area. Another roadside bomb, this one in the Bayaa district,
wounded four
police commandos. On Palestine Street, yet another roadside bomb wounded
four people, including two policemen. Gunmen shot
dead Najim al-Kinani, a former military pilot, in the Mansour neighborhood.
Also, heavy fighting took place in the Hurriyah neighborhood and near Jadriyah
bridge, but no casualties were reported. And police recovered 30
dumped bodies late Wednesday into Thursday.